Night ride in December

Perfect night for a 25 mile ride around the Burgh. Conditions were 46 degrees and hardly any wind...very nice. I reached 1000 miles on the road bike as well. Not bad after having the bike for only 6 or 7 months, and there are two other bikes to ride. Figured I better get out one last time before the snow hits.

Vikes versus Steelers

I rode down to Heinz field to catch some of the pre-game festivities (tailgating). I was surprised to see the number of Viking fans. Lots of Favre jerseys. Unfortunately, I didn't have any purple to sport for the ride. No only that, I would have feared being riden off the road by a motor vehicle. Steelers fans bleed black and gold. Still it was cool to see all the action prior to the big game.

Light Up Night in Pittsburgh

The Surly and I took a trip downtown to check out the fireworks displays...yes, two displays. Pittsburghers don't mess around when it comes to fireworks. One display was closer to Mt. Washington, while the other was off one of the Allegheny briges. Both were very impressive fireworks; plus, the city lights in the background added to the affect.

Great quote...

"Biking is like a gateway drug to greener living."

Rant

Announcement: motorists of Pittsburgh...bikes get the road, too!!! I'm getting really tired of slamming on my brakes so I can swerve to miss your vehicles. Tonight, coming home from the gym just a half mile from home, two motorists decided to demonstrate their Pittsburgh lefts and their inability to account for cyclists. I was pedaling down Negley when the first oncoming vehicle decided to turn quickly left onto Ellsworth in front of me (this was as I was practically in the intersection). After stopping to say a few choice words, I began to clip into my pedal again. To my surprise, the second vehicle behind the other car, opted to turn in front of me as well. I couldn't believe it! After the first incident, how could the person in the second car not notice me? Are you that inept and clueless?
Driving a motor vehicle is a big responsibility. It requires thought, skill, and some coordination. Drivers that are using their cell phones to chat or text are only further distracted. On several past occasions, I've swerved or slammed on my brakes to avoid talking/texting drivers. About a month ago on my way to work, a car behind me bumped into my rear bumper. He evidently was looking at his planner on his lap. Just focus on the task at hand...driving. Sorry, but I had to get this off my chest.

4th time is a charm

Finally, after 3 previous criteriums, I was able to crack the top 10. As a matter of fact, I proudly finished 8th this evening. Tough race, though...we averaged around 25 mph. I won a primes for fastest lap, and should have one at least one more. In fact, I came within inches of winning 3 primes (laps). So, after several attempts at cracking the top 10, and sadly finishing in the middle of the pack, I accomplished my goal at the last crit of the season.
Note on the crit track/course. Pittsburgh has a designated track called the Washington Oval (because it's off Washington Boulevard). This track was formerly where one would take their driver's license test. Therefore, the course has banked turns into the corners. Makes for an interesting race when one is flying into these turns at 20+ miles per hour in an attempt to avaide other cyclists, hold a line, and not crash. It's quite the lung-burning race that's an adrenaline rush.

3 Parks in 3 Days

The picture is deceiving....the Surly did not make the 3 adventures into the parks this weekend (I took this picture on my first visit to the park in August). Instead, the Fisher 29'er had fun playing in the fast, flowing singletrack of Hartwood Acres, Frick Park, and Boyce Park. All were different and unique. Hartwood was a good mix of technical obstacles and smooth-flowing dirt. Frick has an excellent roller coaster section, some leg-burning climbs, and some tricky off-camber trails. Oh, and the super-steep descent off a chute was a bit nerve-racking. Boyce is all about the logs. There are tons of log crossings throughout the park. Plus, a number of bridges and obstacles that add to the technical difficulty. Fortunately, I met up with some guys riding Hartwood on Friday night, so they could lead me around the park. Same guys were nice enough to invite me out to Boyce on Sunday. Overall, some great riding and the weather could not have been any better.

Mural ride and my first Critical Mass

So evidently the Burgh has a number of murals throughout the city. For Bike Fest, a week-long cycling event, we did a ride that toured us around the city to observe these works of art. Our group of roughly 30 riders took in some pretty cool stuff.









Critical Mass was absolutely a huge mass of riders. About 40 participants got together to demonstrate bike advocacy. I loved when people on the streets yelled to us to ask what we were or what we were doing. My favorite was when one lady started clapping and cheering us on. You see - there are other means of transportation, specifically my pedaled two-wheel friend. It's all about being in the moment...where it's just you and the bike gliding along in motion. If you need to stop, you stop. If you need to sprint, you sprint. If you need to climb a massive hill like Canton Ave, you can certainly try. You can just do your thing on the bike. That's the simplicity of it, and that's what makes it great.

Riding...and yet more riding

For the last couple of weeks, my bikes and I have really bonded. It's a very mature relationship, because we've been through a lot over the last month. 1) A move to a major metropolitan city - Pittsburgh (time spent in the back of a Penske truck. 2) Singletrack and city streets that are completely unfamiliar to the tires. And 3) The hills of the Burgh! (killer on the bikes' bottom brackets). Speaking of hills, Sarah and I ventured out to the southside of town to attempt a very specific hill. This hill is argueably the steepest hill in the world (it is the steepest hill in the US). At a 37% grade, the cobblestone makes it only more difficult to climb. I had difficulties going down the slick road, let alone riding up the thing. After 3 failed attempts at the monster hill, I was humbled and slightly humiliated. The Surly (and the rider on the Surly) just could not do it. Next time, I'm bringing the 29'er so I can drop into the granny gear and utilize the knobbier tires on the rough terrain. Here's a few pics, but they really don't do it justice...

Cheat Mountain Challenge - Snowshoe, West Virginia

Rewind 2 weeks...the Cheat Mountain Challenge ride at Snowshoe resort in West Virginia. With over 10,000 feet of climbing, amazing descents, and beautiful Appalachian Mountain vistas, this ride was definitely worth it. Chris and I decided on the metric century (80 miles) after a relatively tough first 15 miles. These climbs were steady and lengthy, but offered up some excellent descents through narrow back-country roads. Fortunately, this ride has rest stops every 15 miles or so. The ride is completely supported, so riders can stock up on PB&J, power bars, chips, fruit, and other goodies at every stop. The route ends with a grueling climb up Snowshoe Mountain. This is climb itself is 2,000 feet. To say the least, I was in the smallest gear the entire way, and required one stop during the way up the mountain. Overall, a fantastic ride and fun trip.

My new home...the Burgh

So it's been 2 weeks since I left Nebraska and have begun a new chapter of my life in Pittsburgh. Thus far, it's been amazing. There's so much to do in the city...several huge parks, excellent cafes and restaurants, unique neighborhoods, beautiful bridges all over, old churches, and hill after hill of leg-building enjoyment.
I've been riding a lot. It gives me a great excuse to get out and explore the city. I've been to Riverview, Highland, Point State, Schenley, and Frick Parks. Riverview has an excellent bike lane that runs around the entire park. A great crit for the road bike. Point State Park is where the 3 rivers meet. And, Frick Park has some amazing singletrack. It's techinical in areas, but mainly rolling dirt trails. I had the chance of riding it on Saturday and Sunday with group rides. Took a good fall (endo) on Saturday on a downhill descent (the decents are much steeper here). Aside from the parks, the city has sufficient on-street bike lanes. Many of these are in gorgeous neighborhoods where you can get a glimpse at all the old homes. Sarah and I have also ventured down to the bike trails along the river. These are either paved or crushed limestone. Our favorite trail is probably the on the North Shore because it overlooks the city and runs along the stadiums.
We've also experienced the Burgh's food. We ate the famous Pittsburgher at Primanti Bros this last Saturday. When my parents were in town, we took them to the Church Brew Works...an old church that has been converted into a brewery. Sarah and I have done a few dinner dates at local neighborhood restaurants. We have discovered that Ellsworth Ave and Walnut Ave (Shadyside) have some good eats.
This weekend, I have plans to do the Cheat Mountain Challenge at Snowshoe Resort in West Virginia. It's 75 miles of Appalachian mountain climbs. I'm meeting up with an former co-worker from the bike store in Lincoln. If the weather cooperates, we're going to make this trip happen.
Exciting stuff going on here. Sarah and I are having a blast!

RAGBRAI '09 - Council Bluffs to Martensdale

Team Skanks loaded up the bikes and ventured off to Iowa for 3 blissful days of self-contained riding. The bike weighed in around 60 pounds, and made the hills of Iowa that more challenging.
The final tally for the 3 days, for my bro and I, was 198 miles (disappointed it wasn't 200). Aside from the rain on Tuesday afternoon, the weather was relatively comfortable. Evenings and mornings were a bit chilly, but nothing to complain about. Highlights of the tour: beer can obstacle course near top of grueling hill, fantastic route out of Council Bluffs, Ames beer (who knew?), pork chops 2 days from Mr. Porkchop, excellent salmon pasta from Pastafari, tent camping, super-steep hill out of Red Oak on Monday (okay, it kind of sucked), flawless pick-up in Martensdale, nice folks in Greenfield who let us set up camp in yard. Good time was had by all!

Fremont Pathfinder Duathlon = best race time yet

Finished the race under an hour at 59:16. Plus, I beat last year's time by a minute (must be the new, full-carbon Cannondale). I cracked the top ten, and placed 8th overall (out of 84 individual racers). The course was flat and temperatures were very comfortable. This personal best was a great way to finish-out my racing in Nebraska.

Tour de MOPAC East

I celebrated the completion of my Lincoln job and the upcoming move to Pittsburgh with a nostalgic ride of the MOPAC trail. Started the MOPAC at 33rd Street and rode out to 334th Street (just past the town of Wabash). Aside from a short chase by 3 dogs near Wabash (I had to sprint), the ride was perfect. Conditions were on the humid side, but refueling with H2O and Gatorade at the gas station in Elmwood certainly saved my butt. The 57-mile trip was completed in 3 hours and 40 minutes. Not the fastest pace, but it was a great way to prep for RAGBRAI next week. Ride on!

Indian Cave State Park trip

My fiance and I had a chance to finally make it out to Indian Cave for some camping and riding. It was great to break out the camping supplies again. Great prep for Ragbrai. That night, while sitting around the campfire, we had an unexpected guest of some kind. Unknowingly, we had an intruder steal a bag of food. We found a trail of oranges from the bag that led into the forest. The girls claimed it was either a pack of coyotes (heard earlier in the night) or a rapeist. So, around midnight, we got to pack up the tents and move our camp closer to other fellow campers (expect now at the RV park down the road). Therefore, it wasn't the most peaceful night.
Sarah and I got up the next morning for some riding. She ventured off on the pavement to explore the entire state park. I ventured into the single track to test trails 3, 7, 8, and 9. With the exception of the awesome downhill and scenic vistas from trail 8, I was disappointed. The horses have again made their mark. I spent a good portion of the ride dodging large horse-hoof divots. The trails are not very bike friendly. You have to know the trails well so you don't have any painful uphills (I experienced one). After such climb, I can across two aquestrians. I made the comment to the first gentleman on horse that it was quite the climb. He replied that is so the bikers don't go on the trails. I thought this was a pathetically rude comment, but I continued on my way as I had to rendevous with Sarah shortly. Overall, a good trip. Glad to have made it out there before the move to Pitt.

Are you...

Put me in charge of the store marquee, and you are going to receive some biased advertising. This will be my 3rd straight year for the greatest bike ride across any state. 20,000+ riders, Mr. Pork Chop (Pork Chooooooooooop!), spaghetti feeds, small Iowa towns with fantastic hospitality, and again thousands of other fellow riders! This year, Team Skanks will be small in number, but strong in weight. We will all be self-supported this year...carrying all our gear on the bikes. Should be a damn-good time!

Jamming with Dain

Recently, I had a chance to jam with Dain (formerly of Shaking Tree). A friend invited Dain over for a house concert in which I sat in on two songs. We covered Dave Matthews' "Crash Into Me" and Indigo Girls' "Closer to Fine." Good times!

At least I can ride and run...

Again, the swim got the best of me. It's as if I panic in the water and I can't seem to reach steady breathing. My swim training has gone well, but open-water swimming is a whole different giant. The mass swim start and the 81 triathletes added to the chaos. At about 50 yards out, I found myself floundering and then flipping over to do the backstroke. It wasn't until the second half of the 1/2 mile swim that I settled down to do the frontstroke. The ride and run is where I made up all my time. I managed to spin the 12 miles at a 22.3 mph pace. Then got off the bike and ran 7:37 miles. Overall, I finished in 16th place and 4th in my age division. Not too bad given the number of participants. Just got some work/training in the swim category.

TNT Duathlon update...

The race went well. I successfully ran 6:23 miles for the first two miles, then averaged 20.3 miles/hr on the bike. I rounded out the event with 7:15 miles (should have been faster, but some leg cramping didn't help matters). I placed 8th overall, with a final time just under 62 minutes. Sarah finished 3rd in her division, and we both came home with medals.
http://www.teamnebraska.org/TNT%20DU%20Results%202009.pdf

Kanesville Krusher at Lewis & Clark

The relatively techical course is strewn with bluffs of difficult climbs. Had a chance to run the granny gear and largest cog on the last climb of the course. Nice little roller coaster section with a tree pyramid obsticle that has been built up. Overall, I placed 10th in the Cat 2 Open division. Not bad considering the circumstaces...
1. Poor first lap thanks to a front deraileur that didn't want to shift down to a lower chain ring at the very beginning of the race (gravel road climb). Therefore, I was already in last place because I had to stop momentarily, put the chain back on the 2nd chain ring, and start pedaling again. First lap 28:12, 2nd lap 53:47, 3rd lap 1:19:35. See?
2. Never rode the course with the exception of the 1/2 lap that I did before the event. That's my own fault, really.
3. Bad allergies. Yep, these were kicking my butt days before the race and into that morning.
Great race, though. Scenic vista of Omaha added to the experience.

http://www.nebraskacyclingnews.com/news/mountain-bike-news-on-nebraska-cycling-news/113-kirkpatrick-wins-kanesville-krusher

Sick...this video is incredible

Thanks to friend, Justin, for introducing me to this rider and the song "The Funeral." Danny has some insane bike skills. All done on a mountain bike. Check it out...

Pittsburgh...2 months in counting

It's been a while since I have posted anything, so I thought I would provide a quick life update. The preparation for the move is well underway. I have begun to box items throughout the house. Sarah and I have narrowed down our options of where we will be living in Pitt. It is definite that we will be "urbanites" and living near downtown. I'd like to live near Frick Park so that I have singletrack at my doorstep. However, I still would like to be minutes from downtown on bike.
Sarah's dissertation has kept her very busy. She is nearing the end of it, and she hopes to defend in June or early July. She's still very cute, even with the added stress.
I have been riding (a lot) and searching for a road bike. I've narrowed it down to a Cannondale Six of some kind. The Psycowpath series has kept me busy. The 3rd race will be in C.B. this weekend. My performance thus far has been average. I've placed in the middle of the pack in Cat 2. I did Cat 3 Open last year, so the competition has been more fierce. The Surly Cross-Check is still cranking out the commuter miles. Go Surly!
I finished the Iron Man Challenge through the gym. The goal was to complete a full Iron Man in two weeks. Of course, the biking came easy as did the swimming (surprisingly). I had to push myself on the runs, but I managed. In fact, the last run was a 4-miler in which I did 7-minute miles. Not too bad for a cyclist.
Aside from all this going on, I have tentatively made plans to visit the West before we head out to Pitt. A trip to Denver and maybe Moab might become reality at the end of June or early July. Still looking for volunteers to accompany me.
Still roaming like a nomad should,
-Jason

Blue October's new album

Many of you know that I am a huge Blue October fan. I've been to over 20 of their shows, many of which were at the old Music Box in Omaha. So, I've been following the band since roughly 2002. Tuesday, March 24th, Blue is releasing their 5th studio album. Their first single on the album, "Dirt Room," highlights why Blue is such an incredible band. Check out some of their more popular songs..."Hate Me, Into the Ocean, Calling You, 18th Floor Balcony, HRSA, Breakfast After 10, Inner Glow, and Italian Radio." Seriously, these guys put on a great concert and have a large following here in Nebraska. In fact, they added a second show at Socol in April. You should really get a ticket to see them.
The band engages the audience in the form of inspiration, amazement, and excitement. They congregate an audience with a passion for their music and the meaning behind their lyrics. They've taught me that not everything needs to be perfect nor will it be. It's about feeling "independently happy" and knowing that the "weight of the world" is not a sole burden. Favorite lyric = "To kill a young man's point of view is to kill his only friend." BLUE!

Engaged!

Wanted to fill you in on some FUN news via the blog. As of Feb. 14th (Valentine's Day), Sarah and I are engaged...to be married, of course! However, we occasionally "engage" in thumb wars in which she has to cheat to win (she uses her index finger). I digress...
I'm sure you're wondering, how did you propose? I will provide a brief narrative. We had just returned home from a Valentine's Day dinner sponsored by our church. I had pictures strategically arranged around the house in the form of a scavenger hunt. The hunt for the beautiful ring started with the roses on the kitchen counter. Written instructions next to the flowers stated that she should follow the pictures, arrows, and music. Sarah correctly followed these items to the spare bedroom where I had her sit down. There, I sang and played a "romantic" song on guitar. By the way, I wrote half of it myself...the rest was compliments of Blue October. Following the song, Sarah was almost crying, but not yet. I then began expressing my deepest sentiments and love (ahhhhhh). Here is where she started crying a little. I got down on one knee and proposed. This is the part when she said, "Yes."
We spent the next few hours calling immediate family, taking pictures, and sipping champagne. Oh, and Sarah dedicated much of this time to admiring her ring.
So that's the FUN news from Lincoln.

Ride'n at Breck in CO

A recent trip to the mountains of Colorado was nothing but fantastic. Greg, my buddy from California, and I visited the resorts of Keystone, Vail, and Breckenridge for 3 days of snowboarding. Luckily, we arrived just after snow had fallen, then we got more freshies the night before our last day. Fresh pow and the Colorado mountains...very nice!

The Road to Raymond

Unseasonably warm temperatures for February meant getting on the bike for a gravel roads ride up to Raymond, NE. It's about 25 miles round-trip from my house in the Highlands. I took N. 1st Street up to Waverly road, then over to NW 40th Street up to Raymond. Following a brief Powerbar break in Raymond, I took Raymond Road down to James Arthur Vineyards. Here, I did a little wine tasting. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Nebraska wines, there are few to choose from (and rightly so). James Arthur actually makes a decent red wine, ironically enough called Nebraska Red. A couple of sommeliers at the vineyard made the comment that I was their first cyclist. I found that hard to believe, but they added that they see bikers, not cyclists. It was a proud moment.
After some pictures and wine tasting, I wandered back onto Raymond Road and took NW 27th back toward Lincoln. In route, I was chased by 3 dogs on two separate occasions. The first 2 dogs almost got to me; the 3rd dog didn't stand a chance. Kind of scary, though, when these dogs dart out of nowhere and start chasing you. Overall, it was a nice two-hour adventure on the 29'er.